Amid the coronavirus outbreak, Olympic organisers were forced to postpone the Summer Games to next year. However, will the Olympic Games take place in 2021, is what is in everyone's mind.
As of right now, no sport is being played and there is no certain answer as to when the coronavirus crisis will subside. Amidst all this, Kentaro Iwata, a professor of infectious diseases at Kobe University on Monday said that the sports events may not take place.
The Japanese expert said, “To be honest with you I don’t think the Olympics is likely to be held next year”.
Iwata added that to safely organise the Olympics, the whole world will require to be free from the virus. Japan bringing the virus under control will not help.“Holding Olympics needs two conditions, one: controlling COVID-19 in Japan and controlling COVID-19 everywhere, because you have to invite the athletes and the audience from all over the world,” he said.
He continued, “Japan might be able to control this disease by next summer, I wish we could, but I don’t think that would happen everywhere on Earth, so in this regard, I’m very pessimistic about holding the Olympics Games next summer.”
Earlier, Japan and International Olympic Committee (IOC) in a joint announcement had delayed the Games to July 2021. The decision came after athletes and several national federations raised fears over safety due to coronavirus pandemic.
The Olympics has most likely never been postponed although they have been cancelled thrice before in 1916, 1940 and 1944 due to the world wars.
Professor Devi Sridhar, who is a leading global health scientist had also said that if there is a need to make the hosting of the Olympics in 2021 a reality, then we should "get a
vaccine within the next year. The vaccine will be the game-changer – an effective, affordable, available vaccine.”
